Who are we

Hello there, we are Peter, Sharron, Matthew, and Viola and we run the Dor and Tan Studio. The story of Dor and Tan begins with a desire to break away from the disposability of modern life, to create objects with a more personal connection. We want our items to become cherished memories, that favourite cup you always pick when boiling the kettle, the soup bowl you reach for after being caught in the rain. We want to bring handcrafted items to people, that have a unique soft character which cannot be created any other way than by the hand of a maker.

You can find us nestled on the North Cornish coast, in the idyllic St. Ives. When not making ceramics we are exploring at sea in our sailboat and hunting and gathering in our local wilderness for inspiration for our next creative endeavour. Or pottering around in our sheltered garden growing fruits and veggies (and an almost ludicrous amount of chillies).

How we design

The process of making is slow and thoughtful, taking care to choose the proper way over the easier way. Each object is thrown by hand from clay sourced locally and fired using green energy. These traditional processes make every piece unique, no two objects will be identical, sisters not twins.

When we are designing new items, we first bring them into our home. We put them on our shelves and use them in our daily rituals. We wear them in, and see how tactile and functional they are. To see which colours, forms, and textures we subconsciously migrate to time and time again. These items we bring into the studio to refine and develop into what eventually makes it onto our store.

Make sustainably

Being located in St. Ives has also put us on the front lines of what plastics and waste are doing to the environment. It’s hard to stay quiet and not express your ambition to change this when you can see it happening all around you. Our studio has helped with beach cleans in the past (and will do so in the future). To get to the root of the problem though we need to look at how we create and consume as a society. This is where a significant amount of our eco-conscious ethos comes from.

Green energy

We use green energy at the studio to fire our kilns and power electric wheels. Our clay is wedged by hand, to minimise our use of electricity.

Recyclable materials

We make sure that all of our packaging can be easily recycled, and where possible are even made from recycled materials.

Sourcing locally

We try our hardest to source within Cornwall and when this is not possible we stay within the U.K. This is to minimise our environmental impact but also help support local businesses.

Ageless design

It’s essential to us to craft ceramics that can age with grace. We strive to create objects using quality materials and techniques, but also with longevity in aesthetics. By making in an ecologically conscious way, we are neutral to the Earth. This is great, but if an item becomes obsolete in a few years, it will be thrown away, or left at the back of a cupboard. As a studio, we don’t think this is good enough.